Metro: Last Light will not contain multiplayer at launch

Metro: Last Light will not contain multiplayer when it releases next year, according to 4A Games.

According to an announcement on the game's website, via Joystiq, 4A said the multiplayer team has been folded back into the main team so it can focus "100% on the single player campaign and not thinking beyond that."

"Throughout the development of Metro: Last Light a small, dedicated team had been working on a number of multiplayer prototypes," said 4A. "After E3, we decided to fold this multiplayer team back into the main group and focus 100% of the studio's resources on the single player campaign. As a result, Metro: Last Light will not ship with a multiplayer component.

"Fortunately, we never dedicated too many resources to the MP component beyond prototyping – it never entered full production. By making the decision when we did, we think the single player campaign will benefit as a result."

4A said response to the game's E3 demo "made it very clear" that the public was interested in Metro’s multiplayer, but the single player campaign "is what the fanbase cares about the most."

"We feel this is the right decision for the game," reads the post. "We are gamers at the studio and really wanted to bring the world of Metro to life in a multiplayer environment. It was a decision made by us at 4A from the outset and THQ have since been supportive every step of the way, including our decision to put multiplayer on hold.

"In hindsight, it was probably a mistake to announce it when we did, but we’re an enthusiastic team and wanted to be open about what we were making.

"We don’t like throwing away work though, it’s a project we could potentially return to after Metro: Last Light ships."

Metro: Last Light is slated for release in early 2013 on PC, PS3, and Xbox 360.